More Ford F-Series trucks have driven at least 250,000 miles than any
other competitor. The Ford F-150 and F-Series Super Duty can out-tow and
out-haul all of their domestic and imported competition. Now, Ford has
a spokesperson who has tackled as many dirty jobs as its trucks: Mike
Rowe, creator and star of the Discovery Channel’s hit show, “Dirty
Jobs.”
Rowe will kick off the partnership by stamping his non-stop, jack-of-all-trades
work ethic on a new series of Ford F-150 “Challenge” ads that
match the truck’s best-in-class towing and payload capabilities
against all top competitors. They debut on network and cable television
this weekend.
Rowe revels in performing the most grueling jobs with the experts that
perform the tasks daily. His dirty jobs have included underwater lumberjacking,
road kill removal, bat cave cleaning and catfish noodling, or bare-handed
fishing – the only job he seriously considered turning down. Currently
in its third season, “Dirty Jobs” is one of Discovery’s
top-rated programs and has highlighted more than 150 different jobs.
“Ford F-Series trucks are working America’s toughest job
sites every day,” says Barry Engle, general manager, Ford Division
Marketing. “Mike Rowe personifies ‘Built Ford Tough’
and showcases how millions of hard-working F-Series truck owners have
helped build the country’s backbone.”
Ford and Rowe will get even dirtier with plans to take on more tough
jobs directly with consumers as the partnership quickly expands. The team
will continue to celebrate America’s hard-working underpinnings
by showcasing the toughness and dependability of the country’s hardest
workers. Ford trucks already co-star in many “Dirty Jobs”
shows because of F-Series’ work site legacy.
“‘Dirty
Jobs’ celebrates the people who do the kind of jobs that make civilized
life possible for the rest of us. It’s no coincidence that those
people rely on Ford trucks to get the job done. I see it over and over
again” says Rowe.
“I’ve wrenched my back hauling garbage, smashed my finger
with a hammer, smashed my toe with a sledgehammer, cut my arm open on
a rusty nail, burned my eyelashes off in a blacksmith's furnace, and became
dehydrated twice. I appreciate the importance of tough in people, tools
and trucks.”
Rowe built
his “Dirty Jobs” resume by traveling the world to swim with
sharks, uncover the mysteries of mummies and even take on what’s
considered the world’s most dangerous job – Alaskan crab fishing
– on Discovery Channel’s “Deadliest Catch.” He
ultimately landed the new job by submitting to Discovery Channel producers
a tape of his wildly popular feature stories from his “Somebody’s
Gotta Do It” segment on the local San Francisco CBS station’s
“Evening Magazine” program.
Rowe’s first job as the newest “Built Ford Tough” spokesperson
is to highlight the Ford F-150’s towing and payload capabilities
in two new spots titled “Boxed” and “Leaf Springs.”
In “Boxed,” Rowe is at a campground. While the Ford F-150
easily tows an 11,000 pound trailer, it takes two trucks from the competition
to pull the same load.
In the second
spot, “Leaf Spring,” Rowe is at a landscape site helping a
crew load massive amounts of landscaping material into the bed of the
F-150. The new commercials begin airing on this weekend nationally. Rowe
also will appear in print and digital ads.
Rowe joins Ford’s dream team of truck spokespeople and marketing
alliances that creatively incorporate F-Series trucks to reach millions
of consumers, including a large percentage of truck buyers, each weekend.
Research shows that full-size pickup truck core customers are highly engaged
in several specific lifestyles, including sports, country music, outdoors
activities and do-it-yourself projects.
“Mike Rowe is a perfect fit for Ford trucks because he already
goes to work with many F-Series owners on ‘Dirty Jobs’,”
says Engle. “All Ford truck marketing efforts draw from the ‘Built
Ford Tough’ DNA that is designed into all F-Series pickups, tested
in the most rigorous conditions and proven in the real world day after
day.”
